To suit your weekend hangover & impeccable taste in egg dishes, we dug up the best brunches in these Houston neighborhoods.
LessHometown heroes Bobby Heugel (Anvil) and Justin Yu (Theodore Rex) are two of the masterminds behind this Heights powerhouse, which rocks both a pleasant patio and even more pleasant Sunday brunch. In the kitchen, Mark Clayton and crew whip up scratch-made breakfast-y dishes like Dutch baby pancakes, oyster mushroom hash, and lè brunch burger, a raclette-smothered stout beef patty piled with lardons, dijonaise, and a fried egg.
James Beard Award-winning chef Hugo Ortega journeys through the various regions of Mexico at three of his cult favorite restaurants -- Hugo’s (Montrose), Caracol (Galleria), and Xochi (Downtown), each of which offers an insanely good Sunday brunch buffet that we will all hopefully be able to experience again some day. In the meantime, you can still the brunchy goodness a la carte at each. Choose from fall-apart lechon, huevos rancheros, and chorizo & egg chile relleno, plus sangria, and margs.
Helmed by internationally trained chef Drake Leonards (whose pedigree includes NOLA hotspots like August, Domenica, and Shaya), this Cajun-Creole brasserie pairs European and Gulf Coast bites with one of the most beautiful dining spaces and patios in town. You can pay it a visit, or experience sensory overload in the form of hearth-roasted oysters, double-smoked duck poppers, blue crab omelettes, and Gulf shrimp etouffee via takeout Sunday brunch.
You can treat yourself to a bubbly-fueled brunch (sparkling options start at $12 and go up to $2,000) complete with morning pastries and jams, a solid eggs Benny, Champagne-marinated fried chicken and waffles, and crispy pommes frites that take a double dip in duck fat at this chic brunch favorite. It’s also a people-watching favorite if you choose to dine in for Saturday and Sunday brunch.
Make your way through the playbook of Tejano classics at this Heights-area joint, a rundown that features savory staples like chilaquiles, migas, Delta-style tamales and eggs, and egg sandwiches on Texas Toast. Those with a sweet tooth head straight for the signature hotcakes, double or triple-stacked and finished with a hefty dollop of whipped butter, sugar dust, and buttermilk syrup.
You can feel pretty fantastic about smashing fat buttermilk biscuits and fried chicken smothered in gravy when you dine at this local mini-chain. That’s because those biscuits are made fresh, that chicken is cage-free, and the gravy, well, it’s damn tasty. The farm-to-table spot puts an emphasis on the farm, with a focus on locally raised meats and agriculture produced in or around Houston.
There are times when brunch calls for cheap Champagne and literally anything that includes bacon. And then there are times when brunch calls for an epic three-course feast that makes you feel like you own an oil company, and that’s where this jazzy New Orleans-kissed classic comes in. They’re currently offering dine-in service—the Big Easy-inspired courtyard is definitely something you should experience—in addition to their “To-Geaux" menu.
Rest assured that the bond between traditional French cuisine and upbeat Houston fare is solid here—just hit up any one of Common Bond’s four locations (or one of two drive-thru On-The-Go locales off Heights Boulevard and in Garden Oaks) to see for yourself. Brunchy bistro eats run the gamut from smoked salmon lox tartines and croque-madames to tamale Benedicts and buttermilk biscuits with jalapeño-sausage gravy.
Sometimes, you just want your weekend brunch with a side of gluttony. Those are exactly the times you should seek out this comfort food spot, which is currently open for curbside pickup, delivery, and dine-in service. The food here is lowbrow in a good way -- think brunch burgers topped with spicy brown sugar bacon, egg, American cheese, and hash browns; buttermilk biscuits smothered with house sausage and fat-laden, East Texas cream gravy; and XXL griddle cakes for two.
If you haven’t had everything cardamom-kissed and cinnamon-spiced from this Indo-fusion street eats spot, you’ve been brunching wrong. Remedy that by hitting up the dine-in (including a newly expanded patio), takeout, and delivery options from Pondicheri’s fast-casual cafe or upstairs bake lab. Wake-me-up treats include all-day breakfast frankies, “everything but the kitchen sink” omelets, ghee burgers, carrot quinoa muffins, and a superlative chai custard pie with a cookie crust.
Sure, you’ll want to visit this Tex-Mex institution for insanely good fajitas but hit it up a little earlier in the day to get in on the badass weekend brunch. That’s when the OG good stuff storms the stage, from huevos rancheros, chilaquiles verdes, and Mexican-style shrimp & grits to a red chile pork posole sure to cure any hangover (with help from a Bloody Maria or two, obviously).